About this Guide

This guide has been developed through a collaboration between the Council of International Graduate Students (CIGS), the Graduate School, and International Student and Scholar Services (ISSS), based on the result of the 2021 gradSERU and students’ voices.  It offers actions for faculty and staff to better support international graduate students, and the resources available to do so.

ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES OF INTERNATIONAL GRADUATE STUDENTS WITH POSITIVE ADVISING AND MENTORING PRACTICES

Although graduate school is a stressful time for any student, international graduate students face unique challenges related to their visa status, limited funding options, and adjusting to a new language and culture. 

Addressing the challenges faced by international students, particularly those related to their national origin and citizenship status, is a crucial component of the University’s effort to ensure greater diversity, equity, and inclusion. 

Many international graduate students also have intersecting marginalized identities within the US (e.g., race, nationality, gender, sexuality, first-generation, and age) and face even more challenges that can affect their mental and physical well-being. Further, international graduate students may be hesitant to broach these topics and voice their needs due to fear of retaliation, anti-immigrant sentiment, or xenophobia, which can be exacerbated by a lack of community and belonging. 

What can advisors and mentors do? 

  • While many issues are systemic, action from faculty and staff can drive longstanding cultural shifts and create more caring communities. These actions are also necessary towards ensuring interactions with students are effective since faculty and staff must be aware of the specific challenges faced by international students in order to maximize their ability to assist, advise, and mentor them.
  • Every interaction with students can be an opportunity for mentorship and affect a student’s graduate and post-graduate careers, so be sure you are well prepared in order to assist students as efficiently as possible.
  • The actions of faculty and staff to support international students can greatly impact their success, productivity, a sense of belonging, and future careers. Meanwhile, inaction and lack of knowledge can have negative ramifications.

You do not have to be an expert on these topics, but rather be aware of them and able to connect students to the appropriate resources. 

Immigration Policies and International Student Legal Status

Over half of UMN international graduate students had concerns with managing their immigration status and visa issues during the 2020-2021 academic year. 

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What are the issues?

Results from the 2021 gradSERU survey tell us: 

  • More than half of UMN international graduate students had concerns with managing their immigration status and visa issues during the 2020-2021 academic year. 
  • More than half of international graduate students said that travel restrictions between the US and their home country had been a stressor for them.
  • Uncertainty about changing immigration policies and travel restrictions impacted their ability to travel for research or personal reasons, or to return to the US as planned if they were traveling when changes occurred. 
  • These concerns have also caused students to worry about their prospects for living and studying in the US. 
  • Nearly one-third said that they experienced stress related to the impact of immigration status on their ability to get an employment-based visa (H-1B) in the future.

What Can Faculty and Staff Do?

  • Acknowledge the additional stress international students experience due to concerns about visa and immigration status and (sometimes unpredictable) changes in policy. This may have an impact on their mental health and affect their ability to plan for the future.
  • Understand the basic visa and immigration rules and regulations international students must adhere to. (You don’t need to be an expert!)
    • There are several types of visas. International graduate students are often on F-1 or J-1 visas. Be sure to know the visa of your student(s) and any particularities associated with it.
    • Students must maintain full-time status by registering for a minimum number of credits per semester. Most graduate programs require a minimum of 6 credits per semester; professional programs vary. Only 3 credits of online courses are allowed per semester.
    • Students have limitations on work hours and type of employment. During the fall and spring semesters, students may work up to 20 hours per week total (50% appointment), but they may work additional hours during the summer and winter breaks. Off campus work requires ISSS authorization and must be related to their field of study. Students who qualify for Curricular Practical Training (CPT) may work additional hours during the fall and spring semesters.
    • Students can suffer harsh consequences if legal status is not maintained. Encourage students to consult with an ISSS advisor if they have any concerns regarding their student status, traveling outside the US, and course registration. Understand that many legal or immigration concerns are outside the scope of ISSS.
    • Consider subscribing to the ISSS Weekly Update newsletters and check their website frequently. These ISSS resources have timely information pertaining to immigration policy and legal status.
  • Communicate clearly and openly with students regarding current and upcoming visa/immigration policy and regulations and the potential impact they could have on their academic progress and employment status, both current and future.
    • Be proactive and work with students to explore solutions and come up with plans that account for these policies and regulations. This may include revising research goals or the timeline for achieving a specific milestone, or shifting funding sources for the student to allow them to maintain their immigration/visa status.
    • Competent advice and career planning must account for visa/immigration policy and regulations. Be mindful of how a student’s accomplishments and academic output may directly impact their employment opportunities and future immigration status. Several visa types take awards, publications, and other accomplishments into account.

What Resources Are Available to Help?

Multilingual Learning

Language skills does not equate to knowledge or cognitive skills.

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What are the Issues?

  • International students face prejudice and discrimination based on their English skills. Language skill does not equate to knowledge or cognitive skill.
    • Students may be familiar with types of English other than American academic English, and these should be validated. Assisting international students with their language skills and providing feedback on written and oral work must account for this.
  • The level of English proficiency varies among international graduate students due to several factors:
    • Language of instruction in the home country
    • Financial means to access English instruction
    • Previous experience with studying abroad
    • Level of education attained by their parents/guardians
  • While being multilingual is an asset, not a deficit, uncovering and learning expectations in a new academic culture takes time and is best supported with explicit instruction, particularly related to:
    • Academic and disciplinary writing conventions
    • Conducting research
    • Communicating with faculty/staff
    • Class participation
    • Proper documentation of writing sources

What Can Faculty and Staff Do?

  • Be open to different perspectives and ways of knowing.
  • Create a safe space to encourage open communication where a diversity of opinions is valued and multilingual students feel their experiences are validated.
  • Clearly communicate program, departmental, and unit expectations or guidelines in writing (e.g. handbook, lab or work protocols) to students. Provide opportunities for students to further request clarification and additional orientation. Be sure to adjust expectations to account for language abilities that may differ from those of a native speaker or American academic English.
    • Create or update an advising or mentoring statement to clarify roles and expectations so international students can better navigate the advising or mentoring  relationship.
  • Support new international graduate teaching assistants through training and providing information directly or making conscious referrals to the Center for Educational Innovation (CEI) or other teaching resources.
  • Support students by offering multiple methods of assessment other than what is most familiar or commonplace in the traditional US education system.  
    • For example, attributing high points for class participation might adversely affect students who come from cultures that use lecture notes and written assignments as primary methods of instruction and assessment or that discourage public speaking.
    • Offer different modes of participation (e.g., large group comments, small group discussions, Jamboard, notecard feedback).
  • Provide constructive feedback on assignments.
    • Clearly establish and communicate expectations for academic and interpersonal conduct.
    • Focus feedback on content, ideas, and organization.
    • Check any biases, assumptions, or expectations you have about writing and where main ideas are communicated.
    • When referring students to writing resources, specify the focus for the referral versus simply telling them to hire an editor; not all students can afford such services.
    • Point out specific examples of the draft that are working well, and then explain why that sentence/section is effective.
    • Proper documentation of sources can be challenging for any writer. Because the idea of plagiarism and the definition of intellectual property varies across cultures, it is critical for faculty to clearly explain what constitutes plagiarism and offer examples of proper documentation of sources.

What Resources Are Available to Help?

For Faculty and Staff

For International Graduate Students

Funding

International Master’s and professional students are often self-supporting, and do not receive funding from their advisor, department, or program.

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What Are the Issues?

  • Limitations on international student funding and employment often result in financial hardship leading to insecurity around meeting basic needs. International students: 
    • Have extremely limited off-campus employment opportunities, such as paid internships. These may only be available under specific circumstances (e.g., Curricular Practical Training).
    • Are ineligible for many fellowships and scholarships because they may be restricted to citizens and permanent residents. 
    • Are ineligible for government-backed loans, and while they may apply for private loans these can be difficult to secure due to non-permanent residency status.
  • International graduate students may rely solely on their stipends to support themselves while in the US. International doctoral students are more likely to rely on their advisor for funding.
    • Furthermore, international master’s or professional students are often self-supporting, and often do not receive funding from their advisor, department, or program.
    • Factors including immigration status limitations, additional school fees, lack of US credit/banking history, or unfamiliarity with US institutions can result in added expenses and a higher cost of living. 
    • Ability to demonstrate financial sufficiency is required to apply for a visa and maintain legal immigration status. Students may also have to pay to maintain their visa status (e.g., a visa application can cost upwards of $500 in fees).
  • International students may be reluctant to raise concerns about their financial well-being, advising relationship, employment conditions, experiences with harassment and discrimination, or other issues, due to fear of retaliation and how this may affect their livelihood and visa/immigration status.
  • 60% report RA and TA positions as their primary means of support.
  • 42% reported worrying during the pandemic that they would not have enough money to cover their housing costs,
  • 26% reported worrying that their food would run out before they got money to buy more.

What Can Faculty and Staff Do?

  • Programs can examine the stipend levels for RA and TA positions and ensure that students are earning a stipend that adequately covers basic living expenses. 
    • Most other employment options available to domestic graduate students to supplement their incomes are not available to international graduate students due to visa restrictions.
    • International students who are responsible for supporting dependents (in the US or abroad) may have increased expenses with few options for covering these due to employment restrictions.
  • Identify or create opportunities for scholarships and fellowships for international graduate students in order to expand and diversify funding sources.
    • Check citizenship or residency requirements before referring international students to funding sources. Students may feel demoralized or frustrated if they are continuously referred to opportunities they are not eligible for.
  • Advocate to lift restrictions on eligibility for grants, fellowships, and training grants.
  • Directors of Graduate Studies should create a safe environment for international students to share employment concerns without fear of retaliation, and work with students to resolve issues.
  • Advisors and supervisors should ensure a work environment with consideration of work hours and workloads.  International students cannot work more than 20 hours per week, and workloads should be distributed accordingly. These expectations should be clearly communicated to all students and reinforced with faculty supervising international graduate student assistants.
  • Understand the basics of off-campus work authorization types (Optional Practical Training (OPT) and Curricular Practical Training (CPT)) and how they impact international graduate students’ opportunities for employment.
  • Know the specific referral points for students based on funding source (e.g., department, graduate assistant employment, One Stop) if they have questions or issues related to their funding.
  • Nominate international graduate students for awards such as PSLSA, and the Mestenhauser Leadership Award.

What Resources Are Available to Help?

Wellbeing

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of international graduate students indicate that instances of hostile behavior increased their concern for their personal safety based on their national origin.

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What are the Issues?

Being an international graduate student and adjusting to immigration status and a new social and academic culture is mentally, cognitively, and emotionally taxing. Some of their identities, such as race, gender, and sexuality, may become new additional stressors for them upon arriving in the US. 

Furthermore, international students may not necessarily understand wellbeing in the same sense as in the US, and may differ in how they prefer to address these issues. Some students may not be used to seeking help depending on their age, culture, or stigma. 

Data from the 2021 gradSERU shows:

  • 64% of international graduate students were concerned about maintaining good mental health. 
  • 69% indicated that instances of hostile behavior increased their concern for their personal safety based on their national origin. 
  • 62% responded that such instances affected their mental health. 
  • Although 68% of international graduate students are aware of mental health resources, only a small percentage use them.  
  • The gap in the awareness and use of resources can be due to cultural norms or the need for more mental health professionals from diverse cultural backgrounds. 

What Can Faculty and Staff Do?

  • Acknowledge sources of stress that may be unique to international graduate students and understand the extra work required to adjust to a new culture, institutions, systems, and structures. Sources of stress include:
    • Differing cultural values, backgrounds, and perspectives
    • Uncertainties, doubts, and lack of knowledge regarding immigration and maintenance of legal status
    • Difficulty to understand how institutions, systems, structures work
    • Discrimination and microagressions on campus because of their language proficiency, national origin, and other identities
    • Political climates domestically and abroad
    • Personal or familial  expectations regarding future prospects and success
    • Challenges to supporting their spouse/partner and children address language barriers while adapting to unfamiliar social and school environments, for students with families
  • Listen to and validate students, particularly in times of distress. Offer to listen to their concerns even if you may not be able to directly assist with the problem. Talking with a caring and trusted faculty/staff to process the situation can make a big difference in a student’s mental and physical well-being.
    • Most international students are thousands of miles from their immediate support system and distance or time differences can be major sources of stress because students cannot always reach their family and/or friends in a timely manner when dealing with a difficult situation or crisis. 
    • Families and friends in a student’s native country may have greater difficulties to understand and provide assistance due to unfamiliarity with the University itself and with systems and structures in the US.
    • Respect student confidentiality. Only talk to others after receiving permission from the student to do so. However, remember that faculty and staff are obligated to report sexual misconduct to EOAA.
  • Refer students to the specific University resources to address their specific needs. Directing students to counseling services or ISSS for all problems should be avoided, and referrals should be made consistent with the occasion and based on the needs voiced by students.
  • Ensure a supportive, safe and inclusive environment to reduce isolation that can increase feelings of anxiety and depression. 
  • Ask for input from students when creating these environments.
  • Build community among graduate students by offering opportunities for them to connect with peers, in-person or virtually, to share their graduate experiences through activities such as peer mentoring or social events, both within and across disciplines and/or identity groups, such as CIGS.
  • Reinforce the importance of well-being and maintaining good physical and mental health.
  • Alleviate unnecessary stress by clearly communicating expectations in writing, clarifying vague terms, and offering examples.
    •  For instance, if you state that you prefer to meet “regularly” with your students and they are to be “proactive” in communicating with you, clarify the frequency of the meetings and the actions expected from the student.

What Resources Are Available to Help?

International students may not be familiar with some or all University resources, or their exact use. Furthermore, some resources are not necessarily designed for international students, graduate students, and both. Before referring a student to a resource, be sure to know about it, its readiness to assist international graduate students, and the specific needs of the student. When referring a student, explain how the specific resources work and why you think it would be a good fit for the student.

For Faculty and Staff

  • Bookmark and download the Red Folder. The Red Folder is designed to help you recognize indicators of student distress and how to respond to the student appropriately.
  • Mental Health Advocates Professional Development Training for Faculty and Staff

For International Graduate Students

Contact

Contact Dr. Char Voight (cvoight@umn.edu), Director of Faculty Initiatives, for questions about this resource. 

Last updated: August 2022